Lordship & discipleship

Transcription

1 Lordship & discipleship What is a disciple? The English word disciple comes from the Latin word discipula for student. In ancient times, a student was assumed to be loyal to his teacher and to accept and carry on his teachings ( his since women were generally not allowed to get an education back then). Likewise, in Jewish culture, to become a rabbi (a Jewish religious leader or teacher, an official synagogue leader), one became an apprentice to a rabbi for several years. The apprentice was a follower and a disciple of the rabbi, the master, and learned from the rabbi s personal training in theology and teaching skills (and women were definitely not allowed). Thus, follow is closely associated with disciple. (Think of Jedi masters and apprentices as a good analogy.) Jesus was a rabbi (note references in Mt. 23:7-8, 26:5, 26:49; Mark 9:5, Mark 10:51, etc.), but he was not trained by an earthly rabbi; instead, he was self-trained or trained by his own divine nature, and by his personal relationship with the Father and the Spirit. He called people to come and follow him (e.g., Mt. 4:19, Mt. 8:22, Jn. 21:19) and women like Mary Magdeline and Mary and Martha were among his followers. His followers included women and men, rich and poor, those of different socioeconomic levels, and later on, even Gentiles. Among his many disciples, he spent special attention training an inner group of 12 disciples, most of whom became the apostles. His teachings on discipleship apply to all of us (see study passages below), and thus every believer is a disciple. So Jesus calls us all to be trained by him, in order that we may also become little rabbis 1. Thus, just as rabbi apprentices later become full rabbis who train other apprentices, we are expected to become mature and help make disciples of others (cf. the Great Commission in Mt. 28). Now there are occasionally lazy disciples among us, just as there lazy students today. There are many good students who come to our school, but there are some undergraduates who come to college to just party and skip classes. They will someday face the consequences of being poor students. For us, poor disciples get disciplined by our loving Father (notice that discipline comes from the same Latin word as disciple ). There are many areas of application where you can take this with your small group. For example, especially with new students here, it would be good to discuss how to be a good student and a faithful follower of Christ. Or for working people, how to be a good worker and a faithful believer. This is often hard. It s easy for many of us to study too hard and neglect our spiritual lives and service. The other extreme happens, too. Some Christians get so busy with serving and ministry that they neglect their studies, which is not good, either. Either way is a poor witness. Putting study over spirituality is like following a master other than Jesus Christ. But neglecting our studies or work is not pleasing to God, either, and can lead to a false sense of spirituality. God is not pleased with laziness or lack of responsibility toward school or work, and that cannot be rationalized by using religious over-involvement as an excuse. In fact, religious over-involvement to the neglect of other responsibilities is a sign of an unhealthy spiritual life a dependence on doing religious things as the basis of one s spiritual life, rather than a healthy, personal relationship with God, or in extreme cases, a religious addiction. And this kind of lifestyle can easily lead to spiritual burnout, a damaged spiritual life, and even depression 2. 1 In fact, Christian is a grammatical diminutive of Christ in Greek, and an adjective form of Christ in Latin, thus meaning something like little Christ or Christ-follower (cf. Acts 11:26). 2 Naturally, excessive studying can lead to burnout and depression as well, which I know first-hand. In college I neglected my spiritual life and spent all my time studying and taking heavy course loads. The stress contributed to my downfall; at one point I broke down emotionally, which plunged me into a long period of depression and spiritual confusion. 1

2 He put us here to study and work, and to serve him as students (or workers), as well as by involvement in a church or fellowship. Thus, it s important how to properly balance our religious activity with student life, how to make Christ the Lord of our studies, and how to be a faithful Christian student, rather than thinking of studies as inherently opposed to our faith. Don t feel like you have to use all the passages or sections here if you don t have time. Of course, you could easily find other good passages to add. I won t always write out explicit questions, but sometimes will provide discussion points instead, which you can easily turn into questions. Themes in this study include the lordship of Christ, surrender and obedience, being faithful as a student, and integrating your spiritual life with your academic life (not just balancing them). 1. Lordship of Christ. Matthew 6: Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. 22 "The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness! 24 "No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money. Luke 9: Then he said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. 25 What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self? 26 If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. 27 I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God." Luke 14:26-33 (excerpts:) 27 And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple. 3 1a. Lordship. Discuss: the meaning of Christ as Lord what the lordship of Christ means in our lives what it means to be a disciple what it means to follow Jesus how Jesus describes how we are to follow him the meaning of taking up your cross is there an endpoint to being a disciple a point where you re finished with the training? how you can help disciple others (at least someday) 3 In this passage, the reference to hating one s parents is merely a hyperbole to stress the importance of putting Christ in absolute first place before everything, in terms of love and loyalty. I suspect Jesus may have also said this to deliberately confront first-century Jewish cultural sensibilities, as the culture tended to take the ideas of honoring one s parents and parental authority to an extreme that God hadn t intended. 2

3 What does it mean when people say, I accepted Christ as Savior but not as Lord? Does that make sense, biblically? 4 Can you be saved without Christ as Lord? 1b. Obedience, submission. Romans 12:1-2 1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God this is your spiritual act of worship. 2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is his good, pleasing and perfect will. 2 Cor. 9:13 Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, men will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else. 2 John 1:6 And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love. What is a living sacrifice? What does it remind you of in the Old Testament? What is your favorite area of disobedience where you least like submitting to God, your favorite type of sin, etc.? Explain the connection between obedience and love (2 John 1:6). What are the results of closer obedience and submission, based on these verses? What, then, are the results of a lack of obedience or submission? What are the greatest obstacles to lordship, obedience or submission in these areas? What areas pose problems for you? How can you handle them better? How can you better submit to God s authority, will, etc.? friends and social life getting along with roommates family & home life school life money and finances dating relationships daily routines managing anger and conflict entertainment school life work 4 This is something heard sometimes when people share their testimonies. Of course, you can t be saved without Christ as Lord, and every believer is really a disciple (or supposed to be). It doesn t mean they lost their salvation and got resaved. What they probably mean is that they were not good disciples or just dormant disciples, until some point when they recommitted their lives and first became serious disciples. All believers are under the lordship of Christ, whether they recognize it or not. 3

4 Why are we required to submit everything to God? Does that mean losing our free will? Does it seem unfair to you? What are our motivations for submitting fully to God? Why is it difficult? Do you think you do pretty well in this? Well, why not? 2. Putting God first in your studies (or work). 1 Thess. 4:11 Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you... Colossians 3: Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, 24 since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. Ecclesiastes 12: The words of the wise are like goads, their collected sayings like firmly embedded nails given by one Shepherd. 12 Be warned, my son, of anything in addition to them. Of making many books there is no end, and much study wearies the body. 13 Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. 2a. Student life. What is more important for you to be a good student, or a Christian who serves faithfully? Should these be seen as opposites? Is service the most important thing in your spiritual life? What is more important than both of these? [hint: daily relationship & walk with God] Why is your personal walk with God most important? How can excessive studying/work interfere with that? How can excessive service interfere with that? How can you work and study hard for God? How do you reconcile the commands to work hard with the warning in Eccl. 12? For you as a Christian, what is the purpose of studying and academic pursuits? What is the purpose of learning? Why does God want you to study? Why do you think he wants you to study in your particular field? Ultimately, what s your studying for? And why do you think God brought you to this school? Discuss: why God wants us to be diligent students (or workers) how it affects our character and self-discipline how it affects our witness how and why we often become too wrapped up in our studies the spiritual dangers of being too wrapped up in our studies why we shouldn t neglect our spiritual lives and service, even though we re busy students how to maintain a strong spiritual life as a busy student how to serve in church & fellowship as a busy student how we can over-extend ourselves in fellowship/church service & duties why neglecting schoolwork due to over-involvement in religious activities is unhealthy the spiritual dangers of over-involvement in religious activities the problems of neglecting schoolwork and other responsibilities due to excessive religious involvement 4

5 How are you to make Christ the Lord of your studies? Of your career plans? How does your field of study interest you as a Christian? What motivates you to study it? Do you study something that God directly created? (biology, physics, etc.) Do you study something that involves application of such studies (like engineering)? Do you study something that involves serving other people (education, counselling, etc.)? Does such an understanding affect how you as a believer view your field of study or career? How can you serve others as a Christian in your field? How can you reach out to and serve fellow classmates? How can you glorify God as a student in your field? What are your reasons for your choice of a major or career? How consistent are they with your faith? Are they a calling from God? A result of the talents, abilities, and interests that God has given you? A result of lessons or experiences that God led you thru or somehow had a hand in? Is your calling or plan, in some way, one from God? How can you know for sure? 2b. Priorities and time management. Take a moment to think about your typical daily schedule. How often do you spend time with God? How do you wake up, and what do you do between that time and your first class? In what ways do you spend time with God? Do you spend time with God while you re studying? While you re going to and from classes and sitting in classes? What does that say about your priorities? Does your schedule indicate that you put God first? What difficulties do you have with time management? Do you find it difficult to spend enough time with God every day? Explain. What things are not really necessary? What are some things that aren t necessarily bad, but distract you from your responsibilities and your time with God? What could you give up? And are there some things that are just time-wasters that you really need to give up? Are there changes in your lifestyle that you need to make? Do you need to take better care of your body, for example? Is habitual sleep deprivation a good idea? 5 Do you pray before you study? Well, why not? How should you pray before studying? Should praying for good grades be the focus of your prayer? What are the greatest challenges to you as a Christian in time management? In spending time to maintain and develop a consistent spiritual life? 5 Once in a small group meeting (at another church) a member asked people to pray that she could reduce her sleep patterns to 5-6 hours per night so she would have time to do more things. We all discouraged her from trying that. We can t abuse our bodies and ignore how God made our bodies to function, even if we try to justify it spirituality (e.g., skipping sleep a lot for an overly tight schedule of studying and heavy church commitments). In fact, fatigue can make you more vulnerable to depression or burnout, which in turn make you vulnerable to spiritual attack. 5